The 'Favourite Tea' Question?

When I'm out and about selling at a fair or market, (or 'on tour' as I call it!) I will often be asked by a customer what MY favourite tea is. I can NEVER answer this question!

It was actually something I'd never thought about before. At first I desperately tried to answer the question, thinking it was a let down not being able to give them something definitive. I began highlighting a few of my faves but as I continued to chat I soon realised I'd already pointed out half the range!

The truth is, I honestly don't have a favourite tea. I now explain that tea is a very personal choice and a decision on what tea to drink really depends on how you feel at any given time. 

With so many different teas to choose from, I tend to select mine to suit the day. This can depend on the season, the weather, how tired I feel, what I'm eating it with or my mood. Sometimes I just have a real 'craving' for a particular flavour. 

I realise I'm in the lucky position of having access to a huge range.  However, I think you can generally cover all bases if you have these 4 types of tea in stock. 

A Black Breakfast Tea - Great as a wake-me-up in the morning. Our hand blended Good Morning is ideal if you like your tea strong. Opt for English Breakfast or Assam for a slightly lighter brew. Smoky Lapsang or Russian Caravan is great in winter with a hearty breakfast. Decaf versions of Good Morning and English breakfast are also available.

A Green Tea - during the summer months I will likely ditch milky black tea for a lighter green tea. I have a substantial range of green, to cover a few different flavour profiles and budgets. Our Japanese Sencha is a light, budget-friendly, easy-drinking green. Peaceful Green, as the name suggests, is a calming blend of sencha, rose and Aloe Vera or try our more expensive White Monkey a delicate 1st Flush with tips. In colder months, our Chun Mee has a deeper flavour with hints of smokiness. 

If you find green tea bitter, please read my blog on Green Tea for advice in this area.

An afternoon Tea - after lunch I tend to switch to caffeine-free tea like our Decaf Earl Grey, a sweet Rooibos or even a peppermint based infusion. If you're feeling a slump and require a caffeine pick-me-up with a sneaky sweet treat then I personally love to opt for one of the flavoured black teas. In Autumn/Winter our warming spicy Chai does the trick. In the summer fruity Peach & Apricot black tea is marvellous but if you want to keep it simple our light and summery Darjeeling and Ceylon Orange Pekoe are perfect without milk.

A Herbal Tea - or herbal infusion as it is more correctly termed. I stock a large range of herbals due to me finding more and more customers opting for caffeine-free drinks. This appears to be down to people cutting down or cutting out caffeine altogether for medical reasons or not wanting a caffeine stimulant late afternoon or evening due to sleeping problems etc. In the summer time, our cooling sweet Spearmint or powerful Peppermint are refreshing for the latter part of the day and also serve as great after-meal digestifs. Our yummy Goodnight infusion is a unique blend containing linden blossom to promote good sleep. For the winter our spicy Lemon & Ginger is really popular amongst customers and is a lovely warming brew for when you're feeling a chill.

It can be easy to default to one particular tea, because 'it's what you always drink'. With a vast selection of 1,000's of teas to choose from, try changing it up, experiment with a new flavour and expand your reportoire. Tune into your mood and select your tea according to the changing seasons or the way you feel. Maybe you'll find a new 'favourite'!

Always keep tea as airtight as possible to preserve its longevity, flavour and quality.